Top sill



June 15, 1937.: M. P. BLOMBERG TOP SILL Filed July 16, 195.4

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 u l n I u...

June 15, 1937. M, P BLOMBERG 2,083,553

.- TOP SILL Filed July 16, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 By m, ww 4am/3 Patented June 15, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TOP SILL Application July 16, 1934, Serial N0. 735,360

7 Claims.

This invention relates to railway cars, or similar vehicles, and has for its principal object to provide a` relatively light but strong longitudinal stress member for use in the car or vehicle roof, and preferably toI have this member in the form of a boxgirder so that the lower portion of the girder may be used for an air duct, and the upper portion for insulation.

Further Vand other objects and advantages will become apparent as the disclosure proceeds and the description is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic, perspective View of body framework illustrating an application of this invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged, perspective view of a fragment of the longitudinal stress member in the car roof;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the manner in which the top sills are secured to the door end post;

Fig. 4 is a plan section taken4 on the line 4 4 of Fig. 2.

It will be understood that this specific disclosure and illustration of a preferred form of the invention are for the purpose of disclosure only and should not be construed as imposing limitations upon the appended claims except as may be required by the prior art.

The body framework shown in Fig. 1 is particularly adapted to the new type streamline trains, and comprises a center sill I0, end sills II and I2 secured to opposite ends of the center sill, door end posts I3 and I4, and I5 and I6, respectively, anti-telescoping plates I'I and I8 supported by the door end posts, and top sills I9 and 20 connected by stress plates 2I and 22 to form a box girder. which rests upon and is secured to the antitelescoping plates Il and I8 and the door end posts I3, I4, I5 and I6. Preferably this portion of the car framework is designed to carry a major part of the car load.

The shell of the car is formed by a plurality of ribs 23 which connect the top sills I9 and 20 with the upper part of the center sill I0. 'I'hese ribs lie in vertical planes and are connected together by various longitudinal framing members, such as roof stringers 24, window header stringers 25, belt rails 26, side sills 21 and various floor stringers (not shown). The ribs when made in one piece (as shown in Fig. 1) serve as combined carlines, side posts and licor supports. The belly of the car is formed by arcuate J-bars 28 which connect the side sills to the bottom of the center sill. Metal sheathing 29 covers the body shell including the belly, a part of the sheathing being indicated in Fig. 2.

Each of the top sills I9 and 20 is preferably formed of aluminum alloy in one piece, this being readily accomplished by employing the extrusion process. The sills, however, could be made of high tensile steel, or other suitable mate-A rial, and certain of the objects of this invention are achieved even when the top sills are made in more than one piece.

vIn the embodiment of the invention shown, each top sill has a relatively deep web portion 30 terminating in outwardly extending top and bottom flanges 3| and 32, respectively. An intervmediate iiange 33 which also projects outwardly,

provides a ledge upon which the ends of the ribs 23 may rest, the ribs being of channel form and having flanged feet, as indicated at 34. The ends of the ribs are secured to the ledge 33 by rivets 35 passing through the flanged feet of the ribs.

Sheet metal stress plates 36 and 3l join, respectively, the top and bottom of the sills I9 and 20, thus forming a box girder which runs the full length of the car. The rivets 38 which secure the top stress plate to the sills I9 and 2U also serve to hold the sheathing 29 in place and provid-e further anchorage for the ribs 23, the rivets passing through the wall 39 of the ribs.

The bottom stress plate 3l is secured to the flanges 32 of the top sills by rivets 40.

An intermediate plate 4I secured to inwardly extending anges 42 of the top sills, divides the box girder into an air duct 43 and a space 44 above, which may be used for insulation, as indicated at 45.

Spacers 46 placed at intervals corresponding to the ribs 23 and having the same cross sectional shape, rest upon and are secured by rivets 41 to the inwardly extending flanges 42 of the top sills and reinforce the entire box girder structure. Preferably, the top stress plate 36 is also riveted to the spacers 46, the rivets being indicated at 48.

Along the lower margin of the top sills are built-upy structures which house lighting fixtures for providing the car interior with indirect lighting. The structures include a cable support 49 secured to the web 30 of the top sills by machine screws 50, and having cut-away portions 5I wherever the lamp sockets 52 are secured to the support; a cover plate 53 of channel form secured by screws 54 to an upwardly and outwardly inclined flange 55 of each top sill, the bottom ange of the cover plate furnishing an attaching surface for the ceiling sheet 56 and a reflector back plate 5l; and a finish plate 58 fastened by screws 59 to the bottom stress plate 3l and having a trough-like projection 60 which receives a suitably curved reflector 6l for ldirecting the light furnished by the lamp 62 along the ceiling sheet. The nish plate 58 is preferably an extruded member and has a channel 63 for accommodating the rivets Eil securing the bottom stress plate 3l to the top sills.

The top sills are joined at their ends to the door posts in a manner best shown in Fig. 3. The flanges 55 are out off, as indicated at 64, so that gusset brackets 65 may t into the channels formed by the bottom flanges 32 and the intermediate iianges 33. The brackets are securely riveted to the top sills and to the door end posts, the rivets $6 which furnish the latter anchorage passing through the anti-telescoping plates, and through castings 6l which t within the tops of the door end posts.

One very important advantage of the longitudinal stress member which has been described is that the distribution of metal furnishes great resistance to bending both in the vertical and horizontal planes, and in addition, the member provides convenient means for attachment to the ribs; for housing the indirect lighting; and for providing an air duct with space above for insulation.

What I claim is:

l. A longitudinal stress member for the roof of railway cars, or similar vehicles, comprising a pair oi top sills each having laterally extending flanged reinforcements, one of said flanged reiniorcements being spaced from the top of the sill and extending inwardly, stress plates joining the top sills above and below to form a box girder, and an intermediate plate secured to the inwardly extending ilanges of the sill to divide the interior of the box girder into an air duct and a space for insulation.

2. A longitudinal stress member for the roof of railway cars comprising a box girder having a pair or" top sills for side walls, said sills having intermediate laterally extending iianges and metal stress plates for top and bottom walls, and an intermediate plate secured to said flanges for dividing the interior of the box girder into an air duct extending longitudinally of said girder, and a space above for insulation.

3. In combination, a one piece top sill having a relatively deep web portion terminating in top and bottom flanges, a plurality of intermediate laterally extending flanges, and a U-shaped cover plate rigidly secured to one of said intermediate anges for forming a passage for electric wires and the like.

4. A one piece top sill having a relatively deep web portion terminating in top and bottom flanges, and a plurality of intermediate laterally extending iianges, one of said last mentioned ilanges being spaced from the top of the sill and extending outwardly and upwardly and means including a cover plate for forming with said bottom and last-named ange a channel through which electric wires may be extended.

5. A longitudinal stress member for the roof of railway cars, or similar vehicles, comprising a box girder having a pair of top sills for side walls, and metal stress plates for top and bottom walls, an intermediate plate dividing the interior of the box girder into an air duct and a space above for insulation, and spacers between the top sills in said insulation space.

6. A longitudinal stress member for the roof of railway cars, or similar vehicles, comprising a box girder having a pair of top sills for side walls and metal stress plates for top and bottom walls, each of said top sills having a plurality of laterally extending flanges, one of which is spaced from the top of the sill and extends inwardly, and an intermediate plate dividing the interior of the box girder into an air duct and a space for insulation.

'7. A longitudinal stress member for the roof of railway cars or similar vehicles comprising a pair of top sills terminating in top and bottom. flanges, stress plates connecting said top and bottom flanges for forming a girder, intermediate laterally extending iianges on said sills, cover plates secured to certain of said intermediate flanges for forming passages for electric conductor elements, and lamp supporting means carried by said sills.

MARTIN P. BLOMBERG. 

